COMMENTARY | I don’t understand some situations at all. Carlos Zambrano and the Chicago Cubs is one of those situations. Does his case reflect well on the Cubs? Does it reflect well on Major League Baseball? It certainly does not on Zambrano.
Samuel Zuba has posted an article at MLB.com titled “Cubs say Big Z is done for the season.” Is he really a “Big Z?” I would use lower case but I think he has company.
On Aug. 12, Zambrano threw two inside pitches at Chipper Jones. It was probably because the Atlanta Braves were clobbering him. He was ejected. You may, if you wish, view the last pitch and ejection in our reference material.
If you do, note that the Braves are ready to fight and the great job the umpire does in preventing that. One other thing to note is the disgusting half-grin on Zambrano’s face; it’s all a big joke.
The next thing Zambrano did, however, exceeded most heinous baseball acts. He told just a couple of people he was quitting baseball and then cleaned out his locker; he cleaned out his locker.
Keep in mind doing that in the real world would be like you or me being belligerent at work and then cleaning out our desk and quitting. Would the company owe us anything? Should the company owe us anything? What company in the world would want Zambrano?
Apparently the Chicago Cubs do.
The title of the reference article betrays the situation just a little bit. The Cubs intend to begin to pay Zambrano his salary once again after his 30-day suspension is up.
First, I’m not a lawyer but it seems to me that if a person breaks a contract you have no obligation to keep your end; I’m surprised. Second, why doesn’t the MLB and the Players’ Association deal with this with some dignity?
Just as with the NFL delay with getting that season going, MLB looks at the fan and says “Players do what they want.”
I’ve been a Cubs fan for a long time. They should have gotten rid of him when he started punching players in the dugout two years ago.
Until they develop the courage to deal with a maverick like Zambrano, the Cubs are destined to remain losers.
Reference:
MLB.com Website, Samuel Zuba, “Cubs say Big Z is done for the season”